As the famous fountain waters danced at the Bellagio Hotel & Casino Las Vegas on Thursday, April 13th, a fire was ablaze among the shops on the roof of the resort. The flames had tourists wondering if pyrotechnics were part of the show, but the clouds of smoke, swift evacuation and fire trucks seemed a bit over the top.
Vegas visitor, Sean Kim, told The Associated Press, "It was kinda unreal. At first I thought it was a pyrotechnics display. We thought it was part of the show. Then we thought, 'Huh. That doesn't look right.'"
Set to the theme of “Pink Panther”, the 11 pm fountain show didn’t miss a beat despite the fire on the roof. The show must go on, as they say, and crowds drew to catch both displays. Can you imagine?
"The sidewalk was just packed with spectators," said Kim. "The smoke got bad, and we started leaving. It smelled like plastic burning."
It could take a few weeks to determine the exact source of the fire, but investigators have a hunch it’s related to electrical work or lighting. With that said, there were no code violations discovered on the property.
It took firefighters nearly 20 minutes to put out the flames and fortunately, no one was injured.
Sources:
‘Fire breaks out on Bellagio Hotel's roof’, The Associated Press, usatoday.com, April 14, 2017
‘At first, Vegas tourist thought fire part of Bellagio show', Ken Ritter and Regina Garcia Cano, Associated Press, abcnews.go.com, April 14, 2017